Guevara lawsuit could be distraction for MPUSD, employment attorney says

Whether or not Alain Guevara is cleared of pending sexual harassment charges, trustees with the Monterey Peninsula Unified School District should be mindful of the challenge a lawsuit poses for a new superintendent, a local attorney said Thursday.

"I don't know the facts, I've just heard general comments," said Michelle Welsh, a Pacific Grove employment attorney. "But having lived through (the Bill Clinton era), it totally distracted from his work as president."

Welsh said it would be challenging to have a new superintendent facing allegations from a sexual harassment lawsuit, "and the board should take that into consideration."

Former President Clinton was sued for sexual harassment by Paula Jones in 1994. The case and the statements he gave during a deposition about the nature of his relationship with White House intern Monica Lewinsky led to impeachment hearings.

Guevara, 44, assistant superintendent for instructional support services at Lake Elsinore Unified School District in Riverside County, was the top choice to become superintendent at MPUSD, and his appointment was scheduled to be finalized Monday.

More than 200 community members attended the district board's meeting before the final action could take place. Trustees decided to table the decision. They won't make further decisions until Monday, when they are scheduled to meet again.

Because the contract needs to be signed by both parties, Guevara is not yet an employee of the district, even if he had accepted the offer. Guevara remains an employee of Lake Elsinore Unified, where his contract for $147,000 a year was renewed in December, spokesman Mark Dennis told the San Diego Union Tribune.

Guevara would start his job at MPUSD on July 1, according to the proposed contract, but it's unclear whether the lawsuit in Lake Elsinore would be wrapped up by then. Kathryn Jones, an assistant principal at Elsinore High School in Wildomar, accuses Guevara and two other present and former administrators of sexual harassment, sexual orientation harassment, retaliation and gender discrimination, among other things.

Originally, the lawsuit named four administrators, but the court agreed to drop one from the case. The court did not agree, however, with Lake Elsinore's attorneys in most points raised in their latest demurrer — a formal objection that does not dispute the facts but alleges they are not sufficient to warrant civil action.

"On a demurrer, (attorneys) are not permitted to challenge the truth of an argument," Welsh said.

"Sexual harassment is complicated in what is and is not enough to constitute sexual harassment," she said. "If it's a single comment, is that enough? Or does it have to be a series of comments? Sexual harassment has to be severe and pervasive to constitute sexual harassment. To the extent it is severe, it does not have to be as pervasive, but if it's not severe it would have to be pervasive."

Jones claims Lake Elsinore administrators' retreats featured activities laden with sexual innuendo. When she complained to her superiors, she was demoted, she says. The latest response by Guevara and Lake Elsinore attorneys maintain that the facts do not support Jones' allegations, and they demand a court trial.

Jones and her attorney told The Herald last week they are proceeding with the lawsuit, and are willing to go to trial if they don't reach an agreement.

Court records indicate a trial-setting conference is scheduled for May 9. If not resolved through settlement, a trial could last 10 to 15 days.

"A concern is the distraction of having the superintendent having to go to depositions of a highly publicized case," Welsh said.